


i never want to leave this sunset town, but one day the time may come, and i'll take you at your word and carry on

by atimeforflores



Category: Exiles (Marvel), Marvel (Comics), Marvel (House of M), X-Men - All Media Types, Young Avengers (Comics)
Genre: Angst, Fluff, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Juvie, Kid Fic, M/M, Non-Graphic Violence, basically Tommy finds all his siblings, during ya vol 2
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-05
Updated: 2018-06-05
Packaged: 2019-05-18 13:23:29
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,075
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14853567
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/atimeforflores/pseuds/atimeforflores
Summary: He had a splitting headache- the kind that came along with being thrown into a building or off a bridge. Blinking his eyes, he was blinded by the bright light filtering in through the ruined ceiling above him. He was in some sort of castle, judging by the stone. The debris showed that it was either old or recently ransacked. Tommy didn’t remember falling asleep in a castle, but then again there were nights he got blackout drunk and ended up in Turkey.





	i never want to leave this sunset town, but one day the time may come, and i'll take you at your word and carry on

Tommy fought through the cotton in his mind that was keeping him asleep when he heard the child crying. He wasn’t too familiar with kids crying, other than the occasional one lost in the grocery store and the odd kid caught in mass destruction. Even with that experience, it was usually until Kate took over since he was oh-so-incompetent with children. 

 

He had a splitting headache- the kind that came along with being thrown into a building or off a bridge. Blinking his eyes, he was blinded by the bright light filtering in through the ruined ceiling above him. He was in some sort of castle, judging by the stone. The debris showed that it was either old or recently ransacked. Tommy didn’t remember falling asleep in a castle, but then again there were nights he got blackout drunk and ended up in Turkey. 

 

He pulled himself off the ground, noting the almost pristine costume he was wearing; being knocked out by a villian and being too drunk to remember where he was were both viable options. 

 

He followed the sound of the crying child- or rather baby -down a destroyed hallway, stepping over fallen rocks and broken glass. Some of the dust seemed to still be settling, giving the appearance that whatever had destroyed the castle wasn’t far gone. 

 

“Shhh, baby.” Tommy heard a young voice loudly whisper, “We’s gots to be quiet.”

 

Tommy stuck his head around the corner of the doorway of the room the crying was coming from, eyes locking on a tiny form huddled in the corner. 

 

“Hello.” He greeted them quietly, stepping more into view when the tiny head snapped upwards. It was a little boy, curled around a crying baby girl. They were both dressed quite nicely, in fine fabrics for such a mess around them. The room they were in might have once been a nursery, but the only salvageable thing looked to be the mattress of what might have been a crib. 

 

“Who are you?” The boy squinted at him suspiciously, angling his small body in front of the wailing infant. Tommy quickly noted the black sclera and red iris, along with the dirt smeared on the toddler’s face. He couldn’t be older than five, probably closer to a young four. Both children shared the same dark curls.  

 

“My name’s Tommy.” He told the child, taking another step into the room. If anything, it made the child relax completely. Tommy observed, confused, as the toddler picked up the squalling infant and made his way towards Tommy, pushing the bundle of soiled linen and squirming child into his arms.  

 

The child walked with a superiority that he must have been born with, tugging on Tommy’s semi full arm and gesturing for him to follow along. Tommy did so at a sedate pace, hyper aware of the fact that the wailing baby had finally quieted down and snuggled into his shoulder, but he could still feel the grime sticking to her. 

 

…

 

Tyler, as the child had instructed Tommy to call him, had led Tommy to what used to be a dining hall. The entire castle seemed to be deserted except for the children and Tommy. Not once had they come across another soul, nor a body. Tommy wondered if he was just the right amount of unsettled or a little bit too much. After all, no one should want to find a body. 

 

Tommy was happy to find that whoever had left the children had also left an abundance of diapers and pull ups for them. There was even salvageable clothing among the debris. 

 

Half way through their first day together, Tyler finally revealed that the baby’s name was “Agatha” after one of their mother’s close friends. 

 

The eerie silence that followed them put Tommy on edge, making him feel desperate to flee the island. And it was an island. He had circled it while Agatha and Tyler were down for their afternoon nap, while also scavenging food. It was as if the entire island had just disappeared; beds were unmade, homes were full of valuables, and there was still food on the tables. Some had gone bad, but Tommy found quite a few fully stocked pantries. 

 

Countless radios led to just static, none of the phones he had found had signal, none of the computers would even turn on. It was as if Tommy and the children were the only people left on the Earth. 

 

Tommy was woken that night by the sound of someone teleporting into the room he had barricaded himself and the children in during the night. Tyler and Agatha were huddled closest to the wall by Tommy before they fell asleep, and were still deeply asleep after the intruder entered. 

 

Tommy cursed himself for removing his goggles to sleep as it would have made adjusting to the pitch black room easier. Tommy held his breath, hoping that the teleporter would ignore him and just move on. 

 

“Thomas?” a woman’s voice called out as a torch was lit within the room. It was held by a blue woman, with thick dark blue curls and a familiar smile. She wore a silver and red one piece super hero suit, but that didn’t make Tommy feel any less on edge. 

 

“Who are you?” Tommy wished he could say that his voice didn’t shake, but that would be a lie. He pressed closer to Tyler and Agatha, running a soothing hand through Tyler’s thick hair. Unlike Tyler, Agatha was practically bald, the only thing on her scalp a fine smattering of dark colored baby hair that curled at the tips. 

 

“My name’s Talia.” The woman said, stepping closer to Tommy and the children. She reached her three fingered hand out towards him, pulling back when he flinched away. “I suppose you don’t know me in this reality.”

 

For some reason, the sadness in her gaze and the confusion of the statement put Tommy at ease. He wasn’t sure what she was talking about when she implied there were different realities. But then again, he wasn’t sure how he had ended up on a deserted island with two kids either. 

 

Tommy was finally able to place why she looked so familiar when she smiled at him as he unwound himself from the children- she smiled just like Wanda.

 

…

 

Upon waking up, Tyler squealed when he saw Talia and threw himself at her, wrapping his chubby toddler arms around her in a chokehold-hug hybrid. Agatha had given her a gummy smile and didn’t spit up on her, which Tommy took as a mortal offense. Agatha hadn’t stopped spitting up on him. 

 

Talia stared at Tommy with an intensity he couldn’t fathom. She had bitched to him that the only thing that fit her other than her tattered suit was “their mother’s” clothes, which was entirely a wardrobe of elegant dresses and formal attire. Apparently being a queen didn’t leave much to comfort. 

 

Talia eventually settled for pants which Tommy was sure weren’t meant to be worn out from under a thick dress and flowy shirts that Tommy was sure he had seen in what was determined to be Magneto’s wardrobe. 

 

She had painfully pried the story from Tyler, how he lived in the palace with his mother, and his two older brothers, Prince Thomas and Prince William. He revealed how he had little memory of the day everyone else disappeared, merely remembering being put to bed and waking up the next morning totally alone. 

 

Talia had arrived that evening, shocked to see the destruction in front of her. Her plan was to rescue all three children, but had moved her focus to caring to Tyler when she discovered that everyone else had been returned to the main universe with no memories of the Magnus Dynasty. 

 

Agatha had been the next child she had located; she described it as if she could feel her mother’s grief and let herself be led to the earth where Agatha and Wanda were living. She spoke of the Earth where most of the X-men were dead and the rest of humanity was doomed to die slow and painful deaths due to radiation poisoning released by faulty Sentinels. Though the Juggarnaut, who was directly at fault for the death of the X-men, was able to defeat the Sentinels, due to his over exuberance in wanting to speak to another human being, he broke down the protective walls that had been keeping the encampment of survivors alive, exposing them to the deadly radiation. Wanda had been using her remaining powers to safeguard Agatha, desperately trying to find a way to save her (in that universe) only child. 

 

Talia had presumed that her connection to the previous incantation of Wanda had led her to the child, and had showed her all the alternate timelines where Wanda’s children continued to meet their untimely demise. 

 

“Why aren’t you ready?” She asked him that afternoon as he fed Agatha her bottle and Tyler his snack of oatmeal and crackers. It made Tommy pause. It had seemed like he was working for so long that he had forgotten he was even able to rest, and now he hadn’t seen reason to plan for anything other than taking care of his alternate universe siblings on an abandoned planet. Billy would definitely have something to say about Tommy getting attached too quickly, but Billy was nowhere in sight, which led Tommy to believe that Billy hadn’t even noticed his disappearance. If an unhinged from time teleporter could find him, a reality warper should have no issue. 

 

“Where are we going?” Tommy asked through a mouth full of cheese crackers. Tyler wrinkled his nose at him and Agatha fussed as a few crumbs landed in her hair. Nothing a good wipe wouldn’t fix however. 

 

Talia gave him another look, one that was two parts exasperation and one part fondness. He hadn’t felt the warm wave of affection like he did then since he was living with the Kaplans. 

 

“To get the rest.” She said as if it were the most obvious answer in the world. And maybe to her it was, but for Tommy who had grown thinking he was a mistake and that no one would ever search for him, the idea of hopping across dimensions to find your long lost siblings was not a given. His adoptive parents hadn’t even bothered to search him out to inform him that dinner was ready. 

 

“Where first?” He looked to Talia for guidance. She grinned at him in the same way that Billy did when he was about to make a sarcastic comment. 

 

“Limbo.” Talia said, simply. As if one could get into limbo, simply.

 

…

 

It turned out that someone could get into Limbo fairly easily if you had a multidimensional teleporter, a toddler with untapped potential, and a speedster. Even Agatha had her moment to shine when she burped and flew the keys that they had needed straight into Talia’s hand. 

 

Talia then expertly led the group down to the dungeons of the castle that Immortus supposedly lived in. Tommy would believe it when he saw the slimy villain himself. Not that he really wanted to face Immortus with a baby strapped to his side and a toddler on his back. 

 

“We have to hurry.” Talia told him as he started to lag. Even a speedster lost some energy toting around two dead weights and himself. “We don’t have much time until they’re corrupted.”

 

Tommy would have asked who they were, but he had a sinking feeling in his stomach. A few more flights of winding stairs and they were at their destination; in the crapped and dirty cells, at the very back of the rows, were two boys. If Tommy had to guess, they were in the 10-12 age range. 

 

Beside him, Talia let out a sigh of relief. Tommy took that to mean that they were not too late to save them. 

 

“Who goes there?” One boy shouted, stepping in front of the other. They both were emaciated and covered in wounds along with filth. The only difference Tommy could truly tell between the two were the hairstyles. The boy in front had longer hair and harsh bangs. The other one had his pulled into a knotted ponytail that made Tommy wince just thinking about having to detangle. 

 

“Come out and face me, you cowards!” the boy continued to holler, stepping towards the bars that caged him. His brother whimpered in fear, hunkering further down on himself. It made Tommy’s blood boil to see them so defeated.  

 

“Shh!” Talia hissed, quickly stepping towards the cell, “I told you I would return.”

 

Tommy followed her lead in approaching the children, shushing Agatha as she began to fuss. The stench of the cell was worse as he approached it. The demand that Tommy pack extra clothes finally made sense. The boy’s clothes were falling off of them and were stained beyond repair. Tommy wasn’t sure if they’d be able to remove them without further aggravating the boys’ wounds. They were caked with dried blood, grotesquely adhering to their abused frames.  

 

“Talia!” The second boy said, running to the bars to clutch her fingers. He no longer showed any fear nor did he show hesitation. 

 

Talia took out the keys that Agatha retrieved for them, finally locating the one that would set them free before gathering them close and turning towards Tommy.

 

“Finally.” She smiled at him, happier than he ever could have expected, “We will soon be whole.”

 

…

 

Tobias and Malachi came from a dimension where Wanda and Simon Williams were married and started a family; apparently Tommy and Billy were just toddlers in that universe, and they were both amazed to see an almost adult Tommy. 

 

They had been stolen away from their rich and heroic parents to be molded into the perfect heirs for Immortus. Molding the perfect heir took a lot more torture than any of them had reasonably assumed. 

 

They had been in Immortus’s dungeon for over three years by the time Talia had found them and almost five by the time they were finally able to escape. Time in Limbo moved differently, as demonstrated by the fact that Talia had thought she had visited the boys five days before their escape, yet for them it had been closer to three months.

 

Talia was a dimension hopper who preferred to stick to herself, until she discovered the fate that many of her siblings shared. Tobias and Malachi were the first siblings she actively searched out, trusting her abilities to take her where she was needed the most. Their relationship was revealed by Immortus’s own musings. She had warped Tommy from his prison within a pocket dimension that was Patrinot so that he could assist her in rescuing the rest of their siblings. The universe which held the House of M was supposed to be their base as it held the most protection.

 

Their next stop, after securing Tobias and Malachi and providing them with new clothes, was to the dystopian world where Thor had taken over the Earth with the help of an Asgardian army, to save two sisters. They’d have to time the jumps just right so that they could save one sister and then the next. There was no way they would be able to to be taken at the same time since they had never been permitted to be with each other alone. 

 

They left Tobias and Malachi to watch Tyler and Agnes as Tommy and Talia navigated the dangerous world where Thor was unworthy of holding Mjolnir. 

 

Tommy learned from Talia that years beforehand Thor had moved Asgard to float above New York, and Thor began to seize control. Many humans were unhappy with this decision and a group decided to attack, killing thousands of Asgardians and mortals alike. Thor eventually decided to merge Asgard with New York, creating New Asgard. Every child’s birth had to be recorded, as was the law. There were those, like Wanda, who would birth children in secret in hopes of being able to start the rebellion. 

 

They found Daiea, who could only have been around 12, deep in the dungeons of New Asgard. Tommy could feel his own breathing getting sharp and labored as memories of Juvie overtook him. 

 

Suddenly he was 13 again and his parents didn’t even come to his trial. He spent night after night in a county jail because no one wanted to pay his bail and he had nowhere to go. His school was destroyed because he threw a temper tantrum because a teacher mocked him in front of the whole class. He was being led away with a collar around him, being treated like he was less than dirt. 

 

He heard the dripping of another young mutant’s blood on the hard tile of the bathroom floor where the guards threw them when the scientists were done with their experiments. One of the duties they had to perform to receive food was to clean up the evidence of those whose bodies gave out.

 

Tommy scrubbed at his palms. He could never get the blood off of them.

 

“Tommy!” Talia hissed, grabbing him roughly by his shoulder. He flinched away, instinctively holding in his powers so that the collar wouldn’t shock him until he’d seize. 

 

“Tommy, breathe with me.” Talia said, softer. He blinked a few times and the tile of the juvie shower turned to the harsh stone of the New Asgard dungeon. He wasn’t 13 anymore, he was 18, and he had a family again. He wasn’t unloved or unwanted. Wasn’t a mistake or a freak of nature. 

 

Though she was blue skinned, Talia looked so much like their mother. They had the same nose, along with the same curly hair and eyes. Tommy would have expected the bright yellow eyes that Nightcrawler possessed, but it was like staring into Wanda’s eyes. 

 

Tommy nodded at her, breathing through his mouth and leaning his forehead against hers. They breathed together until the worst of the panic attack passed and then they continued on their way. 

 

“Child, I do not wish to harm you.” They heard Thor speak, and they moved to see that Thor had entered the dungeon and was addressing Daiea while they had been preoccupied. “But traitors of the new regime do not live.”

 

“Then I will not live.” Daiea snarled, spitting at him. Her lips curled in a way that reminded Tommy of the X-Men, Cyclops. Suddenly the girls’ missing father made sense, as Cyclops had been killed leading a revolt against Thor and the Asgardians. He shuddered thinking about his mother getting caught up in the whole Emma Frost/Scott Summers/Jean Grey debacticle. Daiea had light brown hair with hints of Scott’s red hair. Hopefully Thor was none the wiser. 

 

Within one blink and the next Talia had expertly teleported behind Daiea and grabbed ahold of her, disappearing and reappearing beside Tommy before the God of Thunder could let out a sound of rage. Tommy quickly took off to lead Thor off of the girls’ trail. He had a few close calls but this God of Thunder wasn’t what Tommy’s Earth’s was. Not as honorable, not as handsome, and not as fast. 

 

Tommy ran around the country a few more times, leaving false leads before he felt it was safe to return to the checkpoint that Talia would meet him at. She would bring them all back to Genosha and the royal castle to regroup. They were well and truly alone upon the island. 

 

Talia appeared behind him with her signature puff of blue smoke and the scent of sulphur. The first few times they had traveled together, Tommy had naturally wanted to fight to get away from her grip. He had become used to it somewhere between springing Tobias and Malachi and planning the trip to get Daiea. All hesitation was gone and in its place was a grim determination to just move forward. He had a mission to do. 

 

After they were all in the castle, and Agatha and Tyler were brought back from the house in which they had hid the young children, Talia let Tommy deal with the kids and to help the newest member to get adjusted. She immediately passed out on the pile of linen and pillows they had acquired from around the castle. Tommy was sure that she was pushing herself too hard; he had heard her throwing up early in the morning when she thought that they were all still sleeping. 

 

“They were planning to...reprogram me.” Daiea told them in a halting voice.Though Thor had ordered them to all be reconditioned, Loki had taken the initiative to kill both Jane and Wanda as a way to attempt to crush the resurgence. 

 

Kya, however, had been spirited away before the Asgardians learned about her birth and by the time that her birth was discovered, she was out from under the Odinsons’ watchful eyes. 

 

Kya was the child of a prophecy, the one who would lead the faction that would finally release the Earth from the Asgardians’ clutches. Her birth and identity, since they were unrecorded, could lead to her freedom and being able to be raised not to conform to the idyllic society that simply hid the brutal truth. Children of previous supers were monitored with extreme scruntity, with quite a few going missing if they voiced their dismay with how mortals were treated. 

 

Daiea protested them taking Kya out before her sister could finish “the prophecy” but Talia was determined to remove her. They eventually settled on a way that would help the prophecy come to pass but save Kya before her death. While Thor would travel back in time to convince his younger self not to turn against humanity, they would also travel back before the branch of the multiverse would cease to exist and rescue a younger Kya. Talia would have to do the jump alone because it was too precarious for anyone else to join as the nature of the jump was precarious in and of itself as the timeline was unstable. If it was not timed exactly right, Talia would disappear with the fractured dimension.

 

When Talia teleported away, Tommy could feel his anxiety mounting but forced himself to remain calm for his younger siblings. Talia told him that the trip would possibly take most of the day, and that he had to be in charge until she got back. She had to lure Kya away from where she was hidden in the mountains outside of the Odinsons ever seeing eyes and convince the child to come with her, as she was trained in using her sorcery since birth.  

 

Living in the deserted castle had been peaceful. Agatha usually woke him up in the morning with a hungry cry but that was easily enough taken care of. There was worry in the back of his mind that they would run out of formula soon, but he pushed that further back. The viable fresh food available on the island was also running scarce, but Tommy had gone without food before and would be more than willing to sacrifice so that the younger kids had something to eat. 

 

Tommy spent his day taking care of the younger children, and trying to get to know them. 

 

Tobias and Malachi were twins, and both around 10 years of age, but they weren’t entirely sure themselves. Tobias was more outgoing and seemed to be a bit of a troublemaker, but fiercely protective of Malachi. Malachi was more withdrawn but extremely intelligent. 

 

Daiea was 12 and withdrawn from all of them. She refused to play in the games that Tobias and Malachi started, nor would she humor Tyler or Agatha. Tommy could see Daiea looking longingly at Agatha when Tommy fed her but she refused every offer to participate. 

 

It was getting dark and everyone was getting antsy when Talia’s tell tale  _ poof! _ of smoke appeared, and Talia stepped further in the room with a dirty tween wrapped in her arms. The girl’s bright red curls that were loose around her face, along with a tear streaks down her dirty face. She had bright blue eyes that Tommy knew weren’t from Wanda, so they must have been from her father. 

 

For a moment, Daiea just continued to stare in her self enforced vow of silence before she launched herself at the new comer, holding on tight as the girl also clung to her. 

 

“Uncle Pietro told me about you.” The redhead, Kya, revealed as she weepily hung onto her older sister. Though, the age difference was no longer apparent as Kya was either the same age as Daiea or slightly younger. 

 

Daiea looked stunned by the words, as if she believed that she would fade from everyone’s memory. She looked around then, at Tommy who was holding a sniffling Tyler, and at Talia who- while looking completely exhausted -picked up a fussy Agatha, and then to Malachi and Tobias who were sleeping firmly curled in on each other, and she burst into tears. 

 

The only words Tommy was able to decipher was her sobbing, “I have a family again.”

 

…

 

Tommy was once again woken by the sound of Talia retching. Dawn was just breaking over the treeline, and all of the younger children were still asleep. Tommy quietly got up, making sure not to trip over any of his sleeping siblings. 

 

Approaching Talia, he snagged a washcloth to put on her forehead. When he overused his powers, he usually got a fever along with full body aches. He was surprised Talia was still standing with how hard she had been pushing herself. 

 

“You’re allowed to rest.” Tommy told her, pulling back her dark blue curls so that he could smooth the washcloth against her forehead. The closest Tommy had gotten to this type of affection was his cellmate in the Juvie pulling him out of his own pile of vomit, blood, and piss so that he wouldn’t drown during the night. 

 

“I don’t need to rest.” Talia snapped at him, shrugging his hand off of her shoulder. “This isn’t a side effect of my powers.”

 

“Bullshit.” Tommy hissed back, conscious to keep his voice down. As if on cue, Tobias let out a loud snore. He knew it was Tobias, because Tobias was the only snorer. 

 

“Tommy,” Talia said patiently, with a touch of condescending, “I’ve been dealing with this for 4 months now and I will continue to deal with it for another 5.”

 

The pieces all fit together as Tommy realized what Talia was saying. 

 

“So sorry,” Talia continued, icily, “if I believe this is a time sensitive mission.”

 

…

 

“My John is dead.” Talia told him later that day as they were watching Tobias, Daiea, Malachi, and Kya all play in the little creek behind the castle that led to the ocean. Each child was amazed by the body of water, as if they had never been permitted to be in one before. It was the sad truth that they probably hadn’t. Tyler had been playing with them but had tapped out to take a nap on Talia’s lap. Now that Tommy was looking, he could see the slight curve of her abdomen. 

 

“I’m sorry.” He said, not knowing what else he could say. Agatha stomped on his thighs, digging her tiny toes into the flesh. He winced and moved her onto the blanket they were sitting on in the grass, sighing deeply as she immediately tried to run towards the children splashing in the water. 

 

“I can travel through many, many dimensions, and multiple, multiple timelines, yet I can never save him.” Talia’s voice trembled, and she delicately ran her fingers through Tyler’s hair. He snuffled in his sleep and leaned into her touch. A tear ran down Talia’s face. 

 

“I can run faster than anyone in the world, yet I’ve never had a reason to stick around some place. I’ve just always been running. No one wanted me, no one  _ needed _ me.  You gave me that, so  _ thank you _ .” Tommy told her, reaching out to hold her hand. 

 

They sat in silence as Agatha too nodded off with her head cushioned on Tommy’s thigh, observing the carefree way that their siblings frolicked in the creek. Without them, they wouldn’t have their freedom, and that was worth any heartache. 

 

…

 

The last two children they needed to collect were Jake and Simon Rogers, the twin sons of Steve Rogers and Wanda on an Earth where Steve helped Wanda kill the Avengers. Talia explained that they were actually the ones who made her want to track down all her siblings as before she could control her reality and time hopping abilities, she was forced to watch as her mother destroyed herself along with her twin sons and Steve Rogers. 

 

Talia had figured out a way to intervene momentarily before Wanda’s powers made herself and her family cease to exist. It would be the first mission that would put Tommy in direct contact with his mother, and he wasn’t sure how he felt about that. 

 

Tommy’s adoptive parents never tried to hide the fact that they had adopted him. Their lighter skin made it quite obvious, along with the fact that neither of their brown eyes matched Tommy’s vivid green eyes. 

 

As a child, Tommy hadn’t known that there was something wrong with his family. That most dads didn’t drink that much or get that heavy handed, and most moms didn’t spend every hour not at work avoiding her husband and son or crying. 

 

Tommy had lived an isolated childhood, in a nice neighborhood but never allowed to play with the other children. His father didn’t want Tommy outside when he was working, and Frank was always working. Mary usually worked long shifts as a nurse and Tommy knew not to disturb her when she wasn’t working. 

 

He hadn’t realized something was wrong until a teacher asked them to write an essay on something fun they did with their family, and Tommy realized that he never really did anything with his family. And that, apparently, that wasn’t how families were supposed to act. 

 

Tommy wondered what it would be like to live with a family who actually wanted him around, and being around his siblings had given him that. 

 

Meeting Wanda for the first time, and having it verified that he was wanted and that there were people who loved him, had been life changing for Tommy. The Juvie had taken more than just a year and a half from his life, and he was still trying to fight his way back to normalcy. 

 

Tommy had a lot of mixed emotions for Wanda. He knew that on some level she was his biological mother, but he was still fairly confused by the logistics of it. He also knew that she seemed to favor Billy, loved her coffee as hot as possible, and that her favorite TV show was NCIS. 

 

After Kya’s appearance, it was like Daiea was a totally different person. She willingly interacted with the other children, joining in on the games that they played. She was also surprisingly bossy. 

 

Tommy wasn’t sure he really wanted to leave a 12 year old in charge of another 12 year old, twin ten year olds, a three year old, and an infant, but they truly had no other choice. 

 

Dressed as covertly as possible, Talia teleported Tommy and herself into the remnants of the Avengers Mansion, a scene that was slightly too reminiscent of Tommy’s homeworld for his taste. The Avengers Mansion always left a bitter taste in Tommy’s mouth. It embodied the stories his team shared before him and how they didn’t care about him until they absolutely needed to, until he was their last option.

 

Talia was to stay hidden as Tommy ran into the Mansion and grabbed Jake and Simon before any harm could befall them. It was a job easier said than done. Upon approaching the mansion, Tommy had to take a deep breath to study himself and then needed a second upon seeing his mother. 

 

She had her hands on Jake and Simon’s shoulders, holding them close to her body. She had tears welling in her eyes as she shouted at Steve Rogers. Steve was attempting to placate her, coming closer and closer. Tommy knew that he had to act quickly or they’d all be gone. 

 

He wasn’t sure that he would be able to just steal the boys out from under her, so he decided to try a different route. 

 

“Mother!” He called, stepping out from where he had been observing them. Wanda’s head immediately swiveled to look at him, and the tears in her eye finally overflowed. The look of unadulterated love and grief on her face made something inside him ache. 

 

He took one step forward as she covered her mouth with a hand, releasing her grip on the boy on the left. 

 

“Mother, please.” He pleaded, though he didn’t know what for. Another step forward and Wanda’s remaining hand began to shake as a sob broke loose. 

 

“Thomas!” She said, reaching for him. Finally both boys were released and Tommy knew what he had to do. He hesitated anyways, wondering if any of them could get closure that day. “My first born! I have loved you deeply in the moments you have been missing, and you have finally returned to me!”

 

Tommy could see her magic swirling in the air, proof of her instability. He wanted to weep, but knew he needed to get the boys to safety. Had it been a few years prior, he would have given anything to hear those words, but he had much more to live for than himself. 

 

Grabbing the two six year olds was easier than he thought it would be, but looking back to see his mother disappear was harder than he expected. Her hand was still outstretched towards him as if trying to reach him.

 

He ran faster to get away from the image, skidding to a stop in front of Talia. He fell to his knees and clung to her front, letting his tears wet her attire. The two children were confused, asking for their mother. Talia reached out to grab them, so Tommy braced for the strange sensation of teleportation. 

 

And then everything went black.

 

…

 

Tommy came back to awareness with David’s lips on his. His first thought, rather than to push David away, was that the older male needed some chapstick. His second was that kissing David wasn’t all unlike kissing Kate, though the stubble was something to get used to. The third was that being there, kissing David made no sense. That was when he pushed away, realizing that something had to be horribly wrong. 

 

Billy pulled him into a hug, explaining everything. It left Tommy feeling slightly destitute that even after all the searching, they seemed to forget about him. The vanquishing of Mother left Tommy hollow as he realized that he would always come after something else.

 

He joked as he pushed Billy away, even though he wanted nothing more than to accept it, and he joked while dancing with Kate, though he stopped feeling their sparks when he met a certain tech worker. It was strange to go back to the same life that he had held before, wondering if it was all that was truly out there for him and if what he experienced had just been a cruel illusion. 

 

After the party winded down and Tommy was able to escape, he did, running back to his lonely apartment. 

 

He unlocked the door, glad that he had left a spare key hidden in the door frame, and extra glad that he liked to pay months in advance, ready to fall face first into his bed and back into the dream he had concocted while prisoner of the Patrinot. 

 

“Hey!” a familiar voice hissed as he flipped on the light switch. He turned to see Talia glaring at him, holding a now wailing Agatha. “It’s the middle of the night, what gives?”

 

His mouth dropped open and his throat suddenly felt tight. 

 

“Oh.” Talia glanced between the smeared lipstick that Kate had left on Tommy collar and the half open door behind him, “Sorry, did we interrupt something?”

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


**Author's Note:**

> So like comments fuel me and this is the longest thing i've written in like a really long time so pls do comment, or if ya want more
> 
> huge shoutout to my beta moreroads
> 
> Tumblr is gaysupersoldiers


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